In the last few days we've journeyed all over the island, from Orchard Road to Tampines Mall to Raffles City. I've mentioned Takashimaya... But we had to continue our saga to find the world's "best-fitting, most comfortable, and washable" dresses. (Admittedly I have bought a few myself and have exceeded the self-imposed yearly quota of 1 dress....)

But really, there are more Uniqlo stores here than in all of California. The island is the size of LA proper. There are like 20+ stores here! Also as a great side note-- you get GST and the prices are the same as LA (as in things that are sold for $49.90 in the US are $49.90 Singapore dollars-- sweet).

We spent a lot (too much) time in Isetan. What I personally can't deal with is salespeople who follow you. "Good service" here means that the lady will run around the shop and find you other things that you may like to try on and buy. Note: in Singapore, there is no return policy at most stores... You've been warned.

O.A.M.C-- these are dresses by a local designer. They're sold in Isetan (but if you can't find the things you want they do have their own store-- we found it in the mall that's connected to the Raffles City stop--aka citylink).

We've been told by one of my Aunties that we should look for Korean fashion clothing stores (there is one in the Jem mall). Stay tuned...

Of course, on our first day back, we had to trek down to Orchard Road, the "shopping capital" of the island, to buy things (because there's also the "Great Singapore Sale" going on, lah). 

To get there we took the MRT (subway), which after living in Boston for so long and riding the dinky green line trains, the MRT seemed pretty luxurious.  No squeaks, barely any jerky movement-- riding this public transit system was a breeze. Not only is it fairly straightforwards to get a card (you go up to the kiosk by the turnstiles-- you pay $5 for the card but each ride is substantially cheaper, though there are a few good alternatives for those who are only visiting for less than 2 weeks), but it's also really easy to figure out where you're going. The trains even tell you which side the doors are opening on, and their maps tell you were you are/where you're going. Plus, everything is full of air conditioning. Now why can't Boston's T system have that? (Well, this is the relatively new MRT system that the country did spend millions on, so....)


But back to the story-- shopping on Orchard Road. Note that mid-day, although crowded, is still fine to bring strollers and wheelchairs around. Come rush hour, though-- it's a fast-moving river of people that's almost impossible to cross. Anyway, our first stop: the Ion Shopping Centre.

Imagine your typical high-end shopping mall in America (like South Coast Plaza or the Natick Mall), but add more boutiques and shops you wouldn't find in the States. Even the American franchises are called slightly different things, like McDonald's McCafe, Coffee Bean's Beanery, though there was (surprisingly) a Dunkin' Donuts.  Of course, I avoided those like the plague (though as a side note, it's more common to find packets of chili sauce here as opposed to ketchup), and followed my grandma into Ion's basement food court, also known as the "Food Opera." It's a bizarre place, with its picture frames around lights on the ceiling and random animal sculptures all over (including wall trophies). Despite the odd decor, I managed to find two shops with excellent food: the Teochew Fishball Noodle Soup stall and the Chicken Wing store (I bought Satay, though their wings did look good).  For the most part, these basement food courts are generally sub-par of the traditional "sweating-my-ass-off-but-it's-so-damn-good" outdoor hawker centers that I grew up going to (which are beginning to die off because very few people in the current generation are willing to stand for 15 hours a day making amazing food). However, the satay was actually cooked over charcoal, and the fishballs were made fresh daily, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. 

A few stores down from the food court was an interesting french-looking bakery called BreadSociety that had all sorts of interesting fusion breads. I didn't eat any of their wild concoctions (like lychee earl grey toast) but my grandmother bought some... stay tuned for the verdict.